Hamilton ready to do it for real

Lewis Hamilton on Wednesday revealed how he has prepared for his debut in this weekend's Australian Grand Prix by playing computer games with his disabled brother.

Hamilton will make history in the season-opener here in Melbourne on Sunday when he becomes the first driver of mixed race to break into the traditionally all-white enclave of Formula One.

The international spotlight will fall on the McLaren prodigy, who is now the bookies' favourite to become Britain's next world champion, ahead of Honda's Jenson Button.

And, although Hamilton has never raced for real around the demanding Albert Park street circuit, he believes his experience of competing in the virtual version will stand him in good stead.

The 22-year-old, who has also spent numerous hours in McLaren's simulator in Woking, said: "My brother Nicolas and I have always been playing Formula 1 games on the computer, and now I am going to be one of the cars in those games!

"Always at this time of year I have been looking forward to the first grand prix, getting up early and watching it, but now I’m actually going to be on the grid. There are so many different emotions but excitement is definitely the main part."

Hamilton's younger brother routinely accompanies him to races with their father Anthony, who is Lewis's manager.

"Nicolas is seven years younger and he's a great character," said Lewis. "He might have cerebral palsy but he definitely wants to do something special with his life - maybe in the wheelchair Olympics or even something around F1.

"I wouldn't put it past him trying to be a commentator. He gives me real perspective. He's the one member of my family who'll keep my feet on the ground."

These are heady days for Hamilton. McLaren boss Ron Dennis put him under his wing a decade ago, but media attention suddenly intensified after it was announced last November that he had won the race seat in preference to Pedro de la Rosa.

Dennis has said that Hamilton could win a race in his first season after blazing to the GP2 championship last season. The man himself is pragmatic.

"My aim in Melbourne would be to finish, preferably in the points. It would be great to have a steady first race. That would be a really fantastic start to the season, but it is not going to be easy.

"Testing has been going well. I’ve been really happy with how I’ve gelled with the team and my engineer, Phil Prew. He is a great guy and has made it a lot easier for me to absorb everything and to understand the car.

"We’ve done race simulations, including pit stops and other race weekend activities. Everyone within the team is really keen to push hard. We feel quick, so I am happy going into the start of the season but it is a complete unknown."

Hamilton has spent the winter acclimatising to his new machine and the progress is encouraging. Admittedly, there was that 165mph crash in Valencia earlier in the year, but the odd prang is only to be expected at this stage of his learning curve.

Other than that, however, he has been right on the tail of his team-mate and double world champion Fernando Alonso. The evidence from pre-season testing suggests that Ferrari are setting the pace, followed by McLaren.

Hamilton added: "I want to win, but have to be realistic. If I were to get a podium this year it would be really amazing, so I’ve got to work towards that."

HIs approach is a mixture of hard-edged professionalism and wide-eyed enthusiasm.

He said: "When they first start the car up and you are sitting in it, you can’t help but smile. When you pull out of the pits and you have that power behind you and the car is so finely tuned, it is so exhilarating.

"Then the adrenaline starts pumping and you're out there doing your job. That’s what I love about it and when I get on the grid in Melbourne and am sat in front of the red lights, that will be the best moment so far in my life.

"When you are relaxed everything tends to go smoother, and that is my plan."